Review: The Second Chance Hero by Jeannie Moon

Reviewed by Shelly

I’m a newbie to Jeannie Moon’s writing but I’m already a fan. The fourth book in her Forever Love series is one that I enjoyed but then again, what war-torn-soldier-loving reader wouldn’t? Unlike many other stories I’ve read, the heroine is also a veteran in the war, having served in a medical unit as an RN. I’ve not read any of the other stories in the series, so I don’t have an opinion on how either the writing or story lines differ, and this read just find as a standalone. And for those of us who want to know if it’s a ‘billionaire’ story – even though this is a story about a billionaire, it didn’t play much of a part in the awe and shock moments.

Major Owen Kent just gotten home from his last deployment to Afghanistan. He’s a little beat up physically and mentally but he’s not doing too badly. After getting a couple weeks of rest and relaxation on his boat, Owen’s ready to go back to work. Combat nurse Kim Torres is fighting a losing battle. The man she’d known for most of her life, the one who was her fiancé, the one who’s supposed to love her and only her, dies on her table. Kim’s fight isn’t all about mourning the death of Tom. She’s mourning what the relationship was supposed to be. She’s mourning the friend she lost, but mostly she’s mad about the secret that Tom kept. Heck, I was mad at Tom on her behalf. After running away from both Tom and her own family and friends, Kim settles in as a nanny to Harper and Kevin’s (The Wedding Secret, Book 3) baby.

I liked this couple more than I thought I would, especially Kim. As a trauma nurse, she saw a lot in her time out of country but it wasn’t until Tom’s death that it seemed to hit her. For me, that’s totally understandable because what woman wants to see what amounts to her future die right in front of her own eyes? And that’s what it was for Kim, because at that moment she could offer neither comfort nor relief to Tom. She could only be a face that he professes his affections to. That was a heartbreaker of a scene.

One of Kim’s coping mechanisms when she returned in country was getting away from all the talk of Tom and how wonderful he was, and the other was getting as far away from treating patients as she could get; being a nanny served her purpose well. Once she meets Owen, their attraction had a very natural feel to it – nothing forced or contrived. The progression of their feelings from friends to lovers worked. Even the interference of well-intentioned Harper in their relationship worked for me.

I was a little confused on Owen’s military service timeline, but that didn’t take anything away. Outside of his military career, he’s a billionaire because of the business that he and his two friends started, which continues to grow. He’s as noble as they come with both his service to his country and the jobs that he and his friends have created. Initially, I was a bit skeptical that he would be too ‘perfect’. Moon didn’t write a perfect hero; as a matter of fact Owen has quite a few faults as we get to know him more and more. As he goes through the motions of integrating back into his job at his company and winning Kim, we get to see both the hard and soft side of Owen and it was fun to read – the flow and rhythm really worked for me.

There are a lot of secondary characters but as this is the 4th story in the series and the characters flow from story to story, the names and relationships can get cumbersome but not unmanageable. Other than the effect of war on Kim and Owen, there are no action packed scenes, suspense or anything of the like – just a story about a couple of vets who meet and fall in love after they’ve served their country. I was bummed when the epilogue came around because I truly was not ready to leave this story.